Spring-packing machine



Apiil 12, 1938.

W. E. WUNDERLICH SPRING PACKING Mc-HINE Filed Oct. 5, 1955 5 Sheecs-Sheefl l.

April 12, 1938. w, E. wuNDERLlcl-a- Y' 2,114,008

SPRING PACKING MACHI NE Filed oct. 5, 1953 3 sneets-sheei 2 SIMIINE 43 if ma 76 MH E April 12, 1938. w. E. WUNDERLICH SRRING PACKING MACHINE Filed oct. 5,v 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Apr. 12, 1938 PATE or Fic-LE SPRING-'PACKING BIACHINE William .E. Wunderlich, Muncie Ind.. assignor `vto"'111e""Moore "Compann Muncie, Ind., aV lcorvvporation of ilndiana Application..0ctober5, l1933, :Serial` No. 692,352

l4. Claims.

`My invention is concerned with1the1packaging `of -spring-assembliesy of :the type v:used in fmat- `tresses andupholstery. .Each of such1assemblies :consists v'of -.a -:series vof rows of `Vertical-axis, open- 5 wound coil springs, usually of hour-glassshape,

which v`are `tied together-by .means =of horizontally :disposed "helical springs lof ysmall diameter .th-atf'extend `longitudinally of rthe spring-assem- Ably. .obvously, lsucheassemblies occupy aygreat 510.1amount -cf space in -comparison with their =:Weight; and the .problem .of shipping and storing .them istherefore of A considerable importance.

,.It :is the object of Tmy invention lto package f-such.spring-assemblies in `,compressed form and .15 thus :to reduce :shipping .and `storage charges. lA lfurthenobject of my .invention is jto placea fpluralityy of i spring-assemblies -.in a compact package rin such :a way that theaassemblies mayfbe `removed one vat atime while leaving .the other .20 .assemblies in the package in compressed state.

:Astill vfurther object ofmyainvention fis to pro- .duce a machineL .whichnwill -performfthe Lopera-- tion Lof lpackaging Ythe :spring-.assemblies :in the .-'fmanner lzintend. .L-In carrying-.outmy objects, .I compress `the fspringfa-ssembli'esr'and wrap `them .successively taboutva collapsible arbor, .afcontinuousstrip Lof wrapping paper being wrapped about .the arbor .with -thesprings IWhen `the package :has q.been

30 built. up vEto :the .desired-diameter, .the end of the `Wrapping-paper.stripis secured .fto the rbody of rthetfpackage .as through the use .of glued tape.

,The.machinefor producing 4.the packages com- .prises l a :pair of .endless belts --which have .respec- I 35 tively two stretches that .move .in vthe vsame idirectionand approach eachother vinfthe direc- 1tion-of /Lbelt-movement. lThe paper and springrassemblies are .fed into .'thenmachine .between :these two :belt-stretches so :that v,the vertical 40 .springsl of :the spring-assemblies vare Vcompressed The lower .5'5 `winding portion .of .the machine showing .,iniull Alinesa package which hasjustfbeen `started and .in rdotted lines Va package substantially comfpleted; Figui is .a verticalsection'through the two spring-compressing -portions of :theendless belts; Fig. isanaxial section through the lco1- Z5 :lapsible .arbor about which .the package yis formed; V.and Fig. I6 .is-a ldetailed -view showing y .in .side elevation the --means yemployed vfor holding inoperativezposition that ,portiorrof the machine which is raised .to permit removalof a iinished l0 package.

` The machine illustrated in zthe .drawings corn-` ,.prisesa .framed from oneendof which .there f projects ahorizontalfeed-table I.I. :Near the outer end .of .andfbelow lthe-feel-table I l Imount :l5 .a roll .of .wrappingpaperlz which, in the'operation of the machine, is fed longitudinally 4along -the upper surface y'of the table Il `and tinto thenwrapping mechanism The spring-as- .semblies I-3 1.are placed successively upon .the .20 4paper-moving acrossthe feed-table andare car- -.red into .the machine by paper-movement.

As V.the spring-assemblies .enter `the .machine they are received between twoendless -belts I5 and i6 which, .at the receiving endof `the-ma- :.25 schine, .pass vrespectively.Jaroundvertically spaced ,rollers =I1and-|8. The rollers l1 and |.8 are flocatedfaa sufficient distance .apart -so that ythe y:spring-:assemblies enter `between the belts -fwith- ..out.-any .substantial compression. fmediately l.beyond lthe roller II8, the lower belt i6 Vis substantially..horizontalfand is supported upon `.a ,plate ylil). `Thestretch of the vbelt 15 immediately above ythe horizontal .stretch .of -the belt I6, .however,.:slopes .downwardly in the di- .35 nrection of Vbelt vmovement `so that the spring- Aassemblies `will be .compressed .as they. are fed between the belts. To -support the operative stretch of the belt liagainst the pressure ex erted bythe ,spring-assemblies, .I provide a sta- ..40 tionary .plate I-f2l| which-is supported from .the trame :l0 of .the machine fand `which engages the upper surface of the operative stretch `of .,thebelt I5.

UAt its kinner end, .the belt .I5 passes 4around 45 a .small `:roller -.22, upwardly and f outwardly Y over .another roller .23, and .then ,returns .to the "roller |11. The roller -'22 is spaced above .the table vor .plate .20 Tat such :a distance that `the'spring- :assemblies i yat .a `point beneathy kthe 4roller 22 will `50 -be substantially completely compressed. 4Imme- .diately upon .emerging v.from this Isubstantially ycomplete rcompression, ythe spring-assemblies .pass .into the fwrapping mechanism.

..As-.previously indicated,` the spring-assemblies L55 are wrapped about a collapsible arbor. This arbor, which is shown in detail in Figs. 3 and 5, comprises a central horizontal shaft upon which are mounted radially movable shoes 26. These shoes are held in position on the shaft 25 by means of studs 21 which project radially outwardly from the shaft and are provided with heads received in counterbores in the shoes 26. The heads of the studs 21 limit outward movement of the shoes.

To hold the shoes 26 in their outer position with the collapsible -arbor at its maximum diameter, I employ conical expanders 28 which are located at opposite ends of the arbor and axially movable on the shaftV 25. Collars 29 having helical slots that receive pins on the shaft 25 are used to move the expanders 28 inwardly to hold the shoes 26 in expanded position against the heads of the studs 21. The arbor is shown in Fig. 5 in expanded condition, the expanders 28 being held inwardly by the collars 29, each of which has been rotated to bring into the outer end of its helical slot the associated pin on the shaft 25.

The arbor, which is in expanded condition throughout the wrapping operation, issupported in the machine on two plates 30 which are mounted upon the frame Ill of the machine and upon which the ends of the shaft 25 rest. Axial movement of the arbor relative to the plates 3D is limited by collars 3l on the shaft 25.

The lower belt It, after leaving the plate 20, passes over a roller 35 and thence around the arbor. After leaving the arbor, the-belt I6 passes around a roller 36 which is located close to the roll 22 in order that the belt I6 may embrace as much as possible of the circumference of the arbor. From the roll 36, the belt I6 passes in a generally upward direction over a roll 31, and thence rearwardly and downwardly around a tension-maintaining roll 38. From the roll 38, the belt I6 returns to the roll I8 at the receiving end of the machine, preferably passing beneathanidle roll 39 in doing so.

The roll 38 is rotatably mounted upon a shaft 4I that extends transversely of the machine and has secured to it near its ends pinions 42 which mesh with horizontal racks 43 on the frame I0 ofthe machine. On one end of the shaft'4l there is rigidly mounted a sheave 43 to which is secured one end of a cable 44. Thejcable 44 passes beneath an idle sheave 45 mounted on the frame I 0 of the machine below the level of the racks 43, and thence upwardly around an overhead sheave 46, the end of the cable 44 being secured to a weight 41. The parts are so arranged that the tension produced in the cable 44 by the weight 41 tends t0 rotate the shaft 4I and with it the pinions 42 in a counterclockwise direction (Fig. 1) so as to tend to cause the pinions 42 to roll on the racks 43 toward the rear of the machine. Thus, the desired tension is maintained in the belt I6.

For the purpose of maintaining the spring-assemblies under compression as they pass from beneath the roll 22 into association with the arbor, I provide a rocking pressure-bar 5U (Figs. 3 and 4) which is pivotally mounted, as at 5I, adjacent the roll 22. To the free edge of the pressure-bar 56 I secure a plurality of metal strips 52 which extend upwardly and outwardly in spaced relation in contact with the lower surface of the belt I5. At their outer ends, the strips 52 are attached to tension springs 53 which are in turn securedtothe frame I0 of themachine.

The strips 52 are so spaced that they bear against the upper ends of the vertical springs in the spring-assemblies and so that the helical springs of the spring-assemblies will engage the belt l5 between the strips 52.

As is obvious, the tension maintained on the strips 52 by the spring 53 tends to swing the pressure-bar 5U in a counterclockwise direction toward the belt I6 to maintain the springs in compressed state as 'they pass from beneath the roller 22 into association with the arbor.

For a short distance inwardly from the ends closest to the rolls 35 and 36, the upper surfaces of the plates 30, upon which the shaft 25 rests, are horizontal; but beyond this horizontal portion they slope upwardly in a direction approximately perpendicular to the plane containing the axes of the rolls 35 and 36. At the beginning of the package-wrapping operation, the arbor rests upon these horizontal portions of the upper surfaces of the plates 30; but as the package grows in diameter as successive springs are wrapped, the arbor is forced upwardly along the upper surfaces of the plates 30, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 3.

When a packaging operation is to be started, the strip of paper from the roll I2 is drawn across the feed-table I I and into the machine. This operation is performed by hand until the end of the paper strip is pinched between the arbor and the belt I6, whereupon further paper-feed will kbe automatically effected. As the paper feeds through the machine, spring-assemblies are successively placed upon it as it passes' across the feed table I I. These spring-assemblies enter between the belts I5 and I6, and are compressed as these belts approach each other, the maximum degree of compression occurring at the roll 22. The spring-assemblies are maintained in compressed position by the action of the pressurebar 50 until they become pinched between the belt I6 and the arbor. As the operation of feeding successive spring-assemblies progresses, the package grows in diameter; and when the desired number of spring-assemblies are wrapped, the

strip of paper is severed and its free end secured to the body of the package as by means of strips of glued tape 56 (Fig. 2). Of course, the paper is severed far enough back of the last spring to provide a complete outer turn of paper on the package. During the wrapping operation, tension is maintained on the belt I6 by the operation of the weight 41, as previously set forth; so that the spring-assemblies are maintained. tightly compressed in the package.

To facilitate removal of the finished package from the machine, I mount the rolls 36 and 31 upon a swinging sub-frame 60 which is pivotally connected on a horizontal axis as at 6I to the main frame I0 of the machine. To hold the subframe in operative position during wrapping of the package I seat Vits free end in contact with suitable abutments 62 on the main frame l0 and hold it in such position by the latch mechanism illustrated in Fig. 6. This latch mechanism comprises a rockable shaft 63 which carries a projection 64 positioned to engage from above an abutment 65 onA the sub-frame 60. The shaft 63 is rocked under the control of an operating handle 66 which is retained in locked position by being received beneath a keeper 61 on'the sub-frame To facilitate raising of the sub-frame 60, I

may pivotally connect to it near its upper end a rack 10 "which -extends rearwardly of the machine into meshing engagement with a pinion which is mounted upon the frame I and rotatable with a hand wheel 1l. By removing the operating handle 66 from engagement with the keeper 61 and swinging it to the dotted-line position shown in Fig. 6, the sub-frame 60 is released and can be raised by rotation of the hand wheel 1|. The sub-frame is shown in raised position in dotted-lines in Fig. 1.

With the sub-frame elevated, the nished package may be readily removed from the machine. are rotated on the shaft 25 from the position illustrated in Fig. 5, whereby the co-action of their helical slotswith the pins in the shaft permits them and the expanders 28 to move outwardly to effect collapse of the arbor about which the package has been wound, and the arbor is then removed, expanded, and returned to the machine.

Any desired means may be employed for driving the belts l5 and I6. In the drawings, I have illustrated an electric motor which, through suitable gearing, drives a gear 16 that is rigid with the roll 36. Preferably, the rolls 23 and 36 are of equal diameter and are operatively interconnected by means of equal-diameter pinions 11 and. 11'. In addition to driving the belts through the rolls 36 and 23, I iind it advantageous to apply driving effort to them at other points. To this end, I provide rigid with the roll 23 a driving-sprocket 18 for a power-transmitting chain 19. The chain 19'is held in engagement with the sprocket 18 by means of idler sprockets 80, and passes around sprockets 8| and 82 rigid respectively with the rolls I1 and I8 at the receiving end of the machine.

With my machine, I am enabled to form twelve spring-assemblies, each measuring 52 inches by 73 inches by 4% inches, into a package 52 inches long and 20 to 21 inches in diameter and to save the cost and weight of crating. Further, the spring-assemblies can be removed from the package one at a time leaving the remaining assemblies in compact compressed state.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a machine for packaging spring assemblies, an arbor, a belt encircling said arbor, means for compressing spring assemblies fed to said arbor in association with said belt, a pivotally mounted pressure bar disposed between said compressing means and said arbor and adapted to engage compressed spring assemblies fed to said arbor from said compressing means, and yielding means co-operating with said pressure bar for maintaining the vspring assemblies compressed.

After this has been done, the collars 29V 2. In a machine for packaging spring assemblies, an arbor about which said assemblies are to be wound, a feeding and supporting belt for the spring assemblies, said feeding and sup-porting belt having a generally horizontal feeding stretch extending toward said arbor and thence partially encircling the arbor with its upper face directed inwardly, means for maintaining tension in said feeding and supporting belt, and means for progressively compressing spring assemblies fed to said arbor on the horizontal stretch of said feeding and supporting belt, said means cornprising a second belt having a stretch disposed above the horizontal stretch of said feeding and supporting belt and inclined downwardly toward said arbor, the inclined stretch of said second belt being substantially plane and being the only stretch thereof engaging spring assemblies supported on said feeding and supporting belt.

3. In a machine for packaging spring assemblies, an arbor about which said assemblies are to be wound, a feeding and supporting belt for the spring assemblies, said feeding and supporting belt having a generally horizontal feeding stretch extending toward said arbor and thence partially encircling the arbor with its upper face directed inwardly, means for maintaining tension in said feeding and supporting belt, meansfor progressively compressing spring assemblies fed to said arbor on the horizontal stretch of said feeding and supporting belt, said means comprising a roller disposed adjacent said arbor at a short distance above the horizontal stretch of said feeding and supporting belt, a second roller disposed remote from said arbor and at a greater distance than said first roller above the horizontal stretch of said feeding and supporting belt, a Second belt engaging said two rollers and partially encircling the first named roller, and means engaging that stretch of said second belt eX- tending between said rollers for maintaining it substantially plane.

4. In a machine for packaging spring assemblies, an arbor, a belt encircling said arbor, means for compressing spring assemblies fed to said arbor in association with said belt, a movably mounted pressure bar disposed between said compressing means and said arbor and adapted to engage compressed springassemblies fed to said arbor from said compressing means, and yielding means coi-operating with said pressure bar for maintaining the spring assemblies compressed.

WILLIAM E. WUNDERLICH. 

